DVLA working together with the Home Office to revoke driving licence
OTS Solicitors has been dealing with many clients who have received a letter from the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) informing them of the intention to revoke their driving licence.
It is certainly very upsetting news for the clients but what is important to note is all of them have something in common: they are facing revocation of their British Citizenship.
Yes, we have seen an increase of clients receiving similar letter from DVLA, which usually states as follows:
The Agency hereby gives you notice of our intention to revoke your driving licence in pursuance of Section 99(3) Road Traffic Act 1998, 28 days from the date of this letter.
At present, we are seeing a huge increase in number of UK citizenship deprivation cases for clients who have no criminal records such as many Albanian nationals who obtained refugee status and citizenship on the basis of an Asylum claim based on Kosovan nationality. Many of them have settled down, gained full-time Employment, and started a family and now are facing revocation of their citizenship.
Passport and driving licence are forms of identification and if they are revoked, you are faced with many problems linked to your day to day activities. Best immigration solicitors have seen from previous cases that many are facing problems with their employers as they are unable to provide updated form of IDs. Our highly experienced solicitors can see the grave impact this is having on clients and we are making detailed submissions to protect their interest when we respond to the notice to cancel their passport from the HMPO and the notice to deprive their citizenship from the UKVI.
Can Home Office revoke my British Citizenship?
The short answer to this is Yes; provided it falls within the definitions of British nationality Act 1981.
Under section 40 of the amended British nationality Act 1981, the Home Secretary has the power to deprive a person of British citizenship if:
• The loss of citizenship is conducive to the public good, and would not make the person stateless;
• The citizen obtained British citizenship through registration or naturalisation, and the home secretary is satisfied that British citizenship was obtained by fraud, false representation or the concealment of a material fact. Deprivation of citizenship is permissible even if the British citizen would be left stateless.
• The citizen obtained British citizenship through naturalisation, and the home secretary thinks deprivation of British citizenship is conducive to the public good. This has to be because the citizen conducted himself or herself in a manner that is seriously prejudicial to the vital interests of the UK and the home secretary has reasonable grounds to believe that the British citizen is able to become a national of another country under its laws
What does ‘conductive to the public good’ mean?
Home office guidance states that “conducive to public good” means ‘’depriving in the public interest on the grounds of involvement in terrorism, espionage, serious organised crime, war crimes or unacceptable behaviours’’.
Can the Home office make a person stateless by Depriving their Citizenship?
The Home office cannot make an order on the basis of deprivation being for the public’s good if this would result in the individual being stateless.
So, if you are a British citizen and you are not a dual national of another country, you should not be stripped of your citizenship.
However, the Secretary of State does still hold the deprivation power to make a person stateless.
If a person became British through registration or naturalisation and obtained this through, for example, fraud (Section 40(3)), they can be deprived of their citizenship even if they do not hold any other nationality. This would render them stateless.
Can I challenge or appeal against the decision to deprive my British Citizenship?
Yes, here at OTS solicitors, our lawyers are challenging many deprivation of British Citizenship cases and we have a vast amount of experience in this area.
There is a right of appeal against a notice of British citizenship deprivation. An appeal can be made to the First Tier Tribunal (Immigration & Asylum Chamber) based on the legality and merits of the decision.
If my citizenship gets revoked, can I keep my driving licence as a form of ID?
A driving licence is a commonly used form of ID to secure work, open back account or sign tenancy agreements. However, as mentioned above, both the Home Office and DVLA work closely together. Once the Home Office notifies the DVLA that somebody is being deprived of their British Citizenship; that person will receive a letter from the DVLA confirming that their licence is being revoked within 28 days of the letter.